Someday We'll Be Together

Chapter 6- A Dinner With The Italians

"When Lena opened her eyes, she found herself lying on a couch in a house she had never seen before. Blinking, she looked around. There was a television set from the 80s in front of her. The place had a very Italian vibe to it. As she tried to figure out where she was by looking around, she heard the sound of keys opening the front door.

"Is that you, dad?" Lena asked anxiously as Michelangelo entered.
"How are you feeling?" Michelangelo asked, approaching Lena.
"Refreshed," Lena replied.
"You must have been sleeping since I brought you here," Michelangelo said, sitting down next to Lena.
"Is it okay for me to sit here?" he asked.
"Of course, you can sit," Lena replied, drawing back a bit and looking at Michelangelo.
"Where exactly am I?" she asked.
"Ah, this is my house. I mean, my family's house," Michelangelo replied.
"Your family's house? Don't you live alone?"
"Not yet," Michelangelo said, getting up.
"There's something I want to show you. Follow me."
Lena followed Michelangelo as they went out to the backyard. Michelangelo showed her a brand new skateboard standing next to the garage door.
"I made this myself."
"Wow, I didn't know you could make skateboards. Actually, I didn't know you could do anything," Lena said, laughing.
"Well, there are a bunch of them in the garage, actually. I make and sell skateboards to afford the car I want. But I guess I won't be selling this one. Just look at this baby!"
"Yeah, it's a pretty... skateboard. So, what are you going to do with it? Are you going to use it yourself?"
"That's an option, of course. But I had something different in mind. I want to give this skateboard to you, Lena," Michelangelo said, looking into Lena's eyes.
"Oh, I'm afraid I don't know how to ride a skateboard," Lena said.
Michelangelo grabbed Lena's hand and pulled her towards him by her waist.
"I'll teach you. Just imagine us riding the skateboard together at sunset."
Lena recoiled in horror. It was quite strange to be this close to her father.
Michelangelo looked around and took out a cigarette from his pocket, lighting it. Seeing this, Lena grabbed the cigarette from her father's mouth and threw it on the ground, stomping it out.
"What are you doing?" Michelangelo asked. "Come on, Lena, everyone does it,"
"But you shouldn't."
"You're starting to sound like my mother. Why shouldn't I?"
"Because there's no need, and you might regret it in the future," Lena said. Michelangelo nodded. After a brief silence, Lena turned to Michelangelo.
"Uh, I think I should go now. My parents might be worried, right?"
Lena went inside, with Michelangelo following her.
"Is that the girl you hit with a basketball on the head?"
"Ah, yes, dad. It was just a little accident."
Lena looked at her grandfather, who was about the same age as her father, with surprise. He had a very Italian accent.
"Oh my God. Millie! La ragazza sta bene."*
Michelangelo's mother came rushing in.
"Deve essere affamata."**
"My mom," Michelangelo said, turning to Lena.
"She doesn't speak much English yet."
"No problem, I speak Italian," Lena said.
Michelangelo's eyes lit up.
"Really?"
"Lena turned to Mrs. Fontana and said, "In realtà ho molta fame."***
Michelangelo's mother looked at Lena admiringly and said, "Parla anche italiano! Lei è veramente un angelo."****
"Where did you learn Italian?" Michelangelo asked.
"Well... my family is from Italy," Lena replied.
"What a coincidence. Then I must know your father," Mr. Fontana said.
Lena looked at Michelangelo standing beside her. "I'm sure you do."
"Then let's inform him that you're okay. They might be worried," Mr. Fontana suggested.
"No!" Lena interjected.
Michelangelo's parents looked at her in surprise. "We can't do that because my family... they went on a visit to Italy. So, they're not here right now," Lena said, trying to smile.
"Ah, I see. Why don't you join us for dinner?" Mr. Fontana asked.
Lena had missed the delicious smell of Italian food. It reminded her of her grandmother's house. Lena couldn't resist these tasty dishes, especially since she was very hungry.
Before long, they were having dinner with Michelangelo's family. Michelangelo and Lena sat across from Michelangelo's siblings.
"From left to right, these are my siblings Marco, Michaela, Alfredo, and Marzia," Michelangelo introduced them. Lena already knew his uncles and aunts.
Lena pointed at the preview of The Terminator movie on TV. "Hey, I've seen this movie! It's about a deadly robot sent back in time to kill the mother of a boy who will grow up to defeat the robots. It was a great movie." Michelangelo's brother Marco looked at Lena strangely.
"You can't have seen this movie before. It hasn't even been released yet. This is just a preview."
"Oh, right. Um... my uncle is a filmmaker. I heard about it from him since he works closely with the movie," Lena said, trying to smile. It wasn't entirely a lie. Lena's uncle Marco was working as a film director in 2008. Marco's eyes lit up. "Wow, a filmmaker? I've always wanted to be a filmmaker."
"You will be. I guarantee," Lena said with a smile.
Meanwhile, Saturday Night Live had started on TV.
"Does anyone still find SNL funny?" Lena asked as she took a bite of her grandmother's delicious pasta.
"What do you mean? Everyone looks forward to watching SNL on Saturday nights," Mr. Fontana said.
"Y-yeah, of course," Lena said, remembering her father, who never missed an episode of American Idol.
"What about you, Lena? What do you want to be?" Michelangelo asked, looking at her with interest.
"Oh, me? I want to be a singer. Just like Britney... uh... Madonna," Lena said.
"Do you want to appear on MTV then?" Marco asked excitedly.
"Yes, exactly. One day, I want all my albums to be released on CDs."
"What's that? Cee-dee?"
"Uh... well... you'll see when you grow up," Lena said, remembering she was in 1983.
Lena finished her meal. She couldn't remember the last time she had such a delicious meal.
Michelangelo turned to his father. "Um, Dad... wouldn't it be bad for Lena to be alone while her family is in Italy? I mean, I almost caused her to get injured."
Mr. Fontana nodded. "That's right. I think you're our responsibility now, Lena."
"It would be great for her to spend the night with us here," Michelangelo said, approaching Lena. Unable to resist any longer, Lena got up and walked towards the door. "Okay... um, I should go. It was a wonderful dinner. You're all wonderful. See you later. Much later. Ciao."
"What an interesting young lady," Mr. Fontana said after Lena left.
"And she seems to know everything," Marco added.
"Michelangelo, I have a feeling that girl is your destiny," Michelangelo's father said.
Michelangelo wasn't listening to his family. He was only thinking about Lena. He was mesmerized.